COLOMBO: Skipper Rohit Sharma will be desperate to get back to form as a resurgent India look to set their record straight against hosts Sri Lanka in the Nidahas Trophy Tri-Series, here on Monday.
The stand-in skipper, possibly the most prolific white-ball player after regular leader Virat Kohli, has gone off the boil since the start of the South Africa series.
He will like to score heavily to get his confidence back as he frets on whether he could give Rishabh Pant another game in the tournament.
Touted as Dhoni’s successor, Pant is yet to do justice to his immense potential till now. With someone like KL Rahul waiting for his chance, time is running out for the Delhi player.
Rahul’s presence gives his skipper an option to use him as an opener and himself come at No 4, dropping Pant from the XI.
It was not a perfect start for India’s second-string squad in the tournament as they lost by five wickets against the hosts in the opening match.
But the Rohit-led side bounced back strongly to beat Bangladesh by six wickets in their next match.
So tomorrow’s match would provide India with a chance to make amends for the mistakes they committed against Sri Lanka in the opener.
The tournament is currently evenly poised as all the three teams have won a game each from two outings but Sri Lanka are leading the table on net run rate, ahead of India and Bangladesh.
But a win tomorrow would take India to the top, dislodging the Lankans.
